Bridges at Mint Hill update

The Bridges at Mint Hill halted grading yesterday, but no worries. Town Manager Brian Welch met with mall officials Wednesday night and they told him the onsite work got ahead of the offsite work. Work at the construction site will begin again sometime at the beginning of next year. Welch also said the mall officials told him they are still 100% committed to building the mall.

16 Comments

“No worries!” Be Happy! This is a well deserved halt to this ridiculous, ill thought out project. Hopefully the whole project will just disolve…Too bad they raped the landscape…flat and no trees left.

sarah5555
July 31, 2008 at 9:39 am

We read Marty’s negative mall rants week after week after week in the Times. Although, he does not seem to realize – his is not the only opinion. It is only the loudest and most frequent voice. Lots of us look very forward to a Mint Hill mall.
Clearly with the mall “on hold” – his new rants against the hardworking Mint Hill officials will now be about as the new town hall proposals- or as he sarcastically refers to it as the new “Taj Mahal”.
We are truly tired, tired, tired of listening to Mr. Negativity! Anyone else?…

dcpoindexter
July 31, 2008 at 12:23 pm

Evidently Marty ignores the rest of the news, including the fact that the mall developers, as well as the Town Commissioners, have been planning the widening and inprovement of Lawyers Road all along. I happen to agree with them, that since this is planned to be a regional mall, most of the traffic will be from I-485 toward the mall, not from Mint Hill toward I-485.

russ
April 7, 2009 at 2:29 pm

I don’t believe Marty is alone in this. If you look at the plans for the roads they
are insufficient to say the least. Two lanes each way only for a short distance,
about a mile if I am correct, plus the fact that you can not make any turns.
Then some idiot had the bright idea of a round-a-bout. I can forsee the accidents
and road rage over this. Since Eastland mall will eventually close there will be
a lot of traffic from East Charlotte. Don’t think it will come from just I-485.
So Lawyers and Idlewild will get increased traffic. You see that mentality for
the mall shows that they are thinking with their head between their legs.

Coming home from work I have seen traffic backed up at the Idlewilde and
Lawyers road exits. Just think what will happen after the mall arrives.
Keep in mind the mall developers do not live here and will not live here so I am
inclined not to believe them. won’t believe a word they say because their
bottom line is money. As it is they have already lied to us and you don’t even
know it. They said they quit to let the offsite work catch up. The problem was
money. They are not financially stable and at the end of 2008 it was possible
they may go under.

A 5 story hotel without a tall enough ladder truck for the fire department?
So does that mean we have to buy one now cause some idiot didn’t think about
it? Keep in mind some of this mall uses well water and not city water. Is that
going to cause a problem? What about the increased police force we will need
to cover the problems associated with malls, like rape and robbery? Does that
mean a third police station to be close it? More officers?
—-HIGHER TAXES—-!!!!!

And don’t give me that progress excuse. People moved here to get away from
this not to have it follow them. The only thing I have like about this economic
disaster we have now is the fact that the mall has been halted. Hopefully forever.

Also this website needs some work done on it as it is hard to write due to the
overlays that hide your typing.

It’s amazing how the Mayor and his cronies said yes to a 215 acre monster sized mall but said no to a 60 acre Super Walmart with 3 other large anchor stores plus a dozen perimeter shops at the edge of Mint Hill’s city limits that would have added much needed tax revenue and 400 more jobs. Oh’ I forgot, Mint Hill doesn’t need new business. They just write new nuisence and tree ordinances with stiff new fines. They follow right along with Obama, no new taxes, right,who believes that garbage.

ARM
August 30, 2009 at 10:40 pm

The Mayor got it right. Mint Hill does not need a Walmart.

Steve
August 31, 2009 at 9:44 am

Hey ARM, what do you have against Walmart? I’ve heard the arguments about not wanting the big blue box,( the way the stores used to look like. ) The stores they are now building are as attractive as any other store you will find. They are the number one retailer in the world. While other chains are closing down, scaling back, laying off; Walmart has continued to have a steady profit and continues to build new stores. Walmart also contributes to the community they are a part of. While Charlotte worked to change setback restrictions to enable Walmart to build a new store on Independence Blvd., Mint Hill tells them to, “Go find land elsewhere”. When you have an attractive business that is strong and vibrant, that you know will be here for the long run, that will contribute to the tax base and is on the fringe of the Mint Hill town limits, I can’t imagine why you would be against it.

ARM
August 31, 2009 at 10:07 pm

Is your last name Walton?

Anon
September 1, 2009 at 8:09 am

I agree – we have plenty of Walmarts and Targets in the area without adding another.

CFL
September 1, 2009 at 10:59 pm

It is hard to believe that in this kind of economy, Mint Hill can afford to head butt a Walmart shopping center pleading to be built on its outskirts. Have you seen the area where the shopping center wants to build? Obviously, our town’s leadership would prefer a run-down, empty, lack-luster business and residential area, than a revenue building tax and job producing string of businesses and shops. What are you afraid of Mayor…providing a little healthy competition?

The choice is simple. Most of us shop at Walmart for one thing or another. If Matthews, Indian Trail, Monroe, Midland, and Pineville can have one, why not us? I’d rather keep those jobs and tax revenue close to home. Are jobs here in Mint Hill so plentiful that we can afford to send them packing?

Take a look at the proposed Walmart plan. It is asthetically pleasing and functional, and would probably make me spend my hard earned money right here in Mint Hill, rather than Matthews, where I usually head to. I have an idea…let the people of Mint Hill be given the facts and decide for themselves. What have you got to lose? (Other than 400+ jobs.)

Anon
September 2, 2009 at 10:44 am

What do we have to lose? How about a bunch of unwanted traffic, crime and a future run down hulking shell of a building. See the University location as an example. Nothing there now but grass growing up through the cracks in the parking lot. The one on Albermarle road is already a haven for “illegals” anyway. On top of that, do you think they would have 2 Walmarts within 2 miles of each other anyway?

Steve
September 2, 2009 at 4:14 pm

Hey Anon, the developers showed how the traffic would be handled and everyone at the church meeting was satisfied. They were the people most affected by the traffic. WAS THERE NOT GOING TO BE MUCH MORE TRAFFIC AROUND THE BRIDDGES OF MINT HILL??? IS THAT OKAY BUT NOT OKAY AT ANOTHER LOCATION????
I’ve been to the Walmart in University recently and I did not see a run down parking lot. Have you been checking people at the door of the Walmart on Albemarle Rd. to see their papers ? Is there a sign at the city limits warning people to have their proof of citizenship ready. I wish you would check the police records in all the recently built Walmarts to get the facts on crime! Where do you get off with this anal retentive , narrow minded attitude ?

Anon
September 3, 2009 at 7:47 am

Well Stevie boy:

1. Since I eat lunch parked in the old U-city Walmart lot almost everyday, I feel that I’m fairly qualified to make that statement.

2. Anyone with a brain can see that the Albemarle Rd. location is overrun with illegals. No need to check papers – but I bet if you put an ICE agent at the door their business would be cut in half.

3. I never said it was o.k. to have traffic at the Bridges location either. I think that whole thing is another stupid idea.

4. The first week the new U-City SuperWalmart was opened there was a robbery and a carjacking in the parking lot.

5. There were 886 police calls to the Albemarle road location over a 3 year span which cost the taxpayers $68,665. Those records are readily available online if case you are wondering.

Steve
September 3, 2009 at 10:40 am

Okay Anon, I’m not sure where the old U-City location your talking about is, but I did check out the police crime mapping site and the current Walmart on JW Clay Blvd. has less calls than most of the other businesses close by. I checked the Albemarle Rd. location and there were 8 reported incidents from 7/31/09 -8/30/09. This is anything from a fender bender to a larceny. Overall I don’t see where Walmart parking lots have any more crime than any other comparable sized businesses. Any store that has the best prices is going to be a magnet for people looking to save money. As far as carjackings and robberies go they are everywhere. I would urge anyone to check out this crime mapping site. It’s a good idea.

Anon
September 3, 2009 at 11:52 am

The JW Clay location is the U-City location to which I am referring. It’s now closed! A hulking empty shell – growing weeds. Probably the reason it has less calls is because it has been empty since June.